AP PSYCH Unit 4B - Personality, motivation, and emotion

Test review

Psychoanalysis

A theory of personality and therapeutic technique that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives.

Unconscious Processes

Mental processes that occur outside of conscious awareness.

Psychodynamic Theory

A theory of personality that focuses on the unconscious forces and early childhood experiences.

Id

The part of the personality that contains primitive desires and drives.

Ego

The part of the personality that mediates between the demands of the id, superego, and reality.

Superego

The part of the personality that represents internalized moral standards.

Defense Mechanisms

Psychological strategies used by the ego to protect against anxiety and internal conflict.

Preconscious Mind

The part of the mind that contains thoughts and memories that are not currently in conscious awareness but can be brought to consciousness.

Unconscious Mind

A reservoir of thoughts, memories, and desires that are outside of conscious awareness.

Denial

A defense mechanism involving refusal to accept reality or fact.

Displacement

A defense mechanism where emotional impulses are redirected to a safer target.

Projection

A defense mechanism where individuals attribute their own unacceptable thoughts or feelings to others.

Rationalization

A defense mechanism where individuals justify or explain their behavior in a way that makes it seem acceptable.

Reaction Formation

A defense mechanism where individuals behave in a way that is opposite to their true feelings.

Regression

A defense mechanism where individuals revert to an earlier stage of development in response to stress.

Repression

A defense mechanism where painful or unacceptable memories are blocked from conscious awareness.

Sublimation

A defense mechanism where socially unacceptable impulses are channeled into socially acceptable behavior.

Neofreudians

Psychologists who followed Freud but modified his theories to include social and cultural influences.

Karen Horney

A neofreudian who emphasized the importance of social relationships and proposed that personality is shaped by anxiety and conflict.

Alfred Adler

A neofreudian who believed that feelings of inferiority and striving for superiority shaped personality development.

Carl Jung and Collective Unconscious

Jung's theory that the unconscious mind holds shared memories and archetypes that are inherited from ancestors.

Terror-Management Theory

A psychological theory that proposes that people’s fear of death motivates behavior to uphold self-esteem and worldview.

Projective Tests/Hypothesis

A method of personality assessment in which individuals project their inner thoughts and feelings onto ambiguous stimuli.

Thematic Apperception Test

A projective test in which individuals are asked to interpret ambiguous pictures, revealing their underlying motives and concerns.

Rorschach Inkblot Tests

A projective test using inkblot images to assess personality and emotional functioning.

Humanistic Psychology (strengths/weaknesses)

A psychological perspective that emphasizes personal growth, self-actualization, and the inherent goodness of humans.

Unconditional Positive Regard

Acceptance and support of a person regardless of their behavior, central to Carl Rogers' therapeutic approach.

Self-Actualizing Tendency

The drive to realize one’s full potential and achieve personal growth.

Self-Transcendence

The concept of going beyond oneself to help others and connect with something larger than the self.

Motivation

The process that initiates, guides, and sustains goal-oriented behavior.

Instinct Theory

The theory that behavior is motivated by innate biological instincts.

Drive-Reduction theory

The theory that motivation arises from the need to reduce internal tension caused by unmet biological needs.

Arousal Theory

The theory that people are motivated to maintain an optimal level of arousal.

Lewins’ Motivational Conflict Theory

The theory that conflict arises when people are faced with competing motivations or goals.

Approach-Approach Conflict

A conflict in which an individual must choose between two desirable alternatives.

Approach-Avoidance Conflict

A conflict in which an individual faces both positive and negative aspects of a single goal.

Avoidance-Avoidance Conflict

A conflict in which an individual must choose between two undesirable alternatives.

Multiple Approach-Avoidance

A conflict involving multiple goals, each with both positive and negative aspects.

Homeostasis

The body’s tendency to maintain a stable, balanced internal environment.

Incentive Theory

The theory that behavior is motivated by external rewards or incentives.

Yerkes Dodson Law

The principle that performance increases with arousal up to a point, after which it declines.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

A motivational theory that proposes a five-tier model of human needs, ranging from physiological needs to self-actualization.

Sensation Seeking Theory

A theory that suggests people are motivated by the desire to seek out varied, novel, and complex experiences.

Thrill Seeking

A desire for intense, exciting, and potentially risky activities.

Adventure Seeking

A desire for outdoor, physically challenging, and stimulating experiences.

Disinhibition

A tendency to engage in behaviors that are normally inhibited by social norms.

Boredom Susceptibility

A tendency to become restless and dissatisfied when not stimulated or engaged.

Affiliation Needs

The need to form social bonds and seek companionship.

Self-Determination Theory

A theory that suggests people are motivated by intrinsic needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness.

Intrinsic Motivation

Motivation to engage in an activity for its inherent satisfaction rather than external rewards.

Extrinsic Motivation

Motivation to engage in an activity for external rewards or to avoid negative outcomes.

Overjustification Effect

The tendency for intrinsic motivation to decrease when an activity is rewarded externally.

Glucose and Hunger

Glucose levels in the blood are closely tied to the sensation of hunger.

Ghrelin and Hunger

Ghrelin is a hormone that stimulates appetite and signals hunger to the brain.

Leptin

A hormone that helps regulate energy balance by inhibiting hunger.

Hypothalamus

A brain region that regulates various functions, including hunger and thirst.

Pituitary Gland

A gland that produces hormones involved in regulating hunger, among other functions.

External factors that influence hunger

Environmental cues like food availability, social factors, and stress can affect hunger.

Traits (strengths/weaknesses)

Stable characteristics that describe an individual’s patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving.

Big Five Theory and CANOE

A theory that suggests personality can be described by five broad traits: Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Neuroticism, Openness, and Extraversion.

BFI-Agreeableness

A personality trait characterized by kindness, empathy, and a cooperative nature.

BFI-Conscientiousness

A personality trait characterized by responsibility, organization, and dependability.

BFI-Neuroticism/Emotional Stability

A personality trait reflecting emotional instability and vulnerability to stress.

BFI-Openness

A personality trait characterized by a willingness to experience new things and embrace new ideas.

BFI-Extroversion

A personality trait characterized by sociability, enthusiasm, and assertiveness.

Personality Inventories

Standardized tests used to assess personality traits.

MMPI

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, a standardized personality test used to assess psychological disorders.

Factor Analysis

A statistical method used to identify clusters of related variables that can represent underlying traits.

Social-Cognitive Perspective

A theory of personality that emphasizes the role of social learning, cognitive processes, and situational factors.

Reciprocal Determinism

The idea that behavior, cognition, and the environment interact and influence each other.

Self-Esteem

An individual’s sense of self-worth and value.

Self-Efficacy

An individual’s belief in their ability to succeed in specific situations.

Spotlight Effect

The tendency to overestimate how much others notice or care about our behavior.

Self-Concept

An individual’s perception of themselves, including their abilities, traits, and identity.

James Lange Theory of Emotion

A theory that suggests emotions are the result of physiological responses to stimuli.

Cannon-Bard Theory of Emotion

A theory that suggests emotions and physiological responses occur simultaneously and independently.

Schacter Singer Theory of Emotion

A theory that suggests emotions result from physiological arousal and cognitive interpretation of the situation.

Spillover Effect

The tendency for emotions to transfer from one situation to another, influencing reactions.

Zajonc and Ledoux Theory of Emotion

A theory suggesting that some emotional responses occur instantly, without conscious thought.

Affect

The experience of emotion or feeling.

Role of Autonomic Nervous System and Emotion

The autonomic nervous system controls the body’s physiological reactions to emotions, such as heart rate and breathing.

Cognitive Label of Emotions

The process of identifying and interpreting emotions through cognitive appraisal.

Cognitive Appraisal of Emotion

The mental evaluation of a situation that determines the emotional response.

Facial Feedback Hypothesis

The theory that facial expressions can influence emotional experiences.

Broaden and Build Theory of Emotion

The theory that positive emotions broaden thinking and build personal resources.

Universal Emotions – Paul Eckman

Paul Ekman’s theory that certain emotions are universally expressed and recognized across cultures.

Display Rules

Cultural norms that dictate how emotions should be expressed and managed in different social situations.

Elicitors

External events or stimuli that provoke emotional responses.